Pocatello, Idaho – Idaho State delivered a statement opening day at the Oregon Classic on Thursday, pushing No. 20 Oregon to extra innings before erupting for a 13-4 run-rule victory over Samford behind a historic sixth inning at Jane Sanders Stadium.
The Bengals showed they could go punch-for-punch with a Top-20 opponent in the afternoon, then turned around and overwhelmed Samford with eight runs in the sixth inning, highlighted by two grand slams.
Game One
#20/18 Oregon 4, Idaho State 3 (8 innings)
Idaho State went toe-to-toe with the Ducks for eight innings, leading twice and forcing the ranked hosts to earn the walk-off.
The Bengals struck first in the secon inning when Jenna Kearns singled and then scored on a two-run blast from Kira Day to give the Bengals a 2-0 lead. The homerun was Day's 2nd of the season, putting the Bengals on top early.
Oregon tied the game with single runs in the third and fourth innings, but Idaho State answered again in the fifth. Day doubled to left field, Belle Navarrete was hit by a pitch, and Jaden Moore delivered off the bench with a pinch-hit RBI double to center to put the Bengals back in front, 3-2.
The Ducks evened the game in the sixth and the teams battled through a scoreless seventh to force international tiebreaker rules, with a runner automatically placed on 2nd. Idaho State was unable to push across the placed runner in the eighth, and Oregon secured the 4-3 decision with a walk-off RBI double in the bottom half.
Day finished 2-for-3 with a home run, double, two RBI, and two runs scored. Moore added the pinch-hit RBI, and Kearns recorded a hit and scored once.
Kasey Aguinaga worked five innings in the circle, allowing three earned runs with three strikeouts. Marley Goluskin provided two innings of relief, allowing just one run, which was unearned, while striking out two.
Idaho State held the Ducks to six hits and led twice against the ranked hosts.
Game Two
Idaho State 13, Samford 4 (6 innings)
If the first game showed resilience, the second showed firepower.
Idaho State scored in five of six innings and erupted for eight runs in the sixth to secure a run-rule victory.
The Bengals opened the scoring in the first when Belle Navarrete doubled and Alyssa Yee followed with an RBI double. Navarrete added an RBI single in the second, and Kira Day delivered a sacrifice fly in the third to keep pressure on Samford.
After Samford briefly took a 4-3 lead in the fifth, Idaho State responded immediately. Yee doubled to open the bottom half, and Ava Brown launched a two-run home run to left center to put the Bengals back in front, 5-4.
Then came the sixth.
Chavez singled to set the table. With the bases loaded, Alyssa Yee crushed a grand slam to center field, pushing the lead to 9-4.Renay out, Kennedy Dudley walked, Chloe McGreevey entered as a pinch runner, and leadoffAfter a
The Bengals were not finished.
Following a single from Sydney Groves and a walk to Brown, Jenna Kearns was hit by a pitch to load the bases again. Kira Day stepped in and launched another grand slam to center, capping an eight-run inning and sealing the 13-4 victory.
Yee finished 3-for-4 with two doubles, a grand slam, and five RBI. Day drove in five runs, including the second grand slam of the inning. Brown went 2-for-2 with a home run, two RBI, and three runs scored. Navarrete added two hits and an RBI.
went the distance, throwing six innings and allowing four runs on nine hits while striking out four to earn the win.TommasiniIn the circle, Lizzy
Bengal Bites
• Idaho State hit .298 as a team on Day One with 17 hits and 16 runs.
• The Bengals slugged .632 and hit four home runs across the two games.
• Ava Brown finished the day hitting .600 with a 1.400 slugging percentage, one home run, two RBI, three runs scored, and two walks.
• Kira Day hit .500 with two home runs, seven RBI, and a 1.667 slugging percentage.
• Alyssa Yee drove in five runs and hit a grand slam in the sixth inning against Samford.
• Idaho State scored 16 total runs, including eight in the sixth inning against Samford.
• The Bengals outscored opponents 16-8 on the day.
• Idaho State recorded a 5+ run victory and pushed a ranked opponent to extra innings.
On Deck
The Bengals return to action tomorrow starting the day off taking on the Stetson Hatters, followed by another game with the Samford Bulldogs.
